My EDM 310 Blog Is Now Complete

I have enjoyed spending time with everyone. I'm sure we will each other again along our education journey. To everyone graduating I wish you much success and well behaved students. Emma thanks for being my computer bud. Call me if you need help in math. Shout to Mr. Wakeman thanks for your patience and understanding.

My Final Post: Did I learn??

In EDM310 taught by Mr.Bob Wakeman at the University of South Alabama I learned alot more than I expected. I began this class not knowing anything of computers. Now I can produce a PowerPoint and word document that is professional. I know how to blog and how my students can benefit from blogging. Pod Cast are a great classroom resource to learn about new and exciting things other teachers and administrators are doing in their schools. Excel is great for classroom budgets and grade books. I've learned through my Pod Cast assignment about all the great educational websites that are available.I've already save some in my favorites for future use in my classroom.

IPods are more useful than I thought because they can actually hold lessons and educational information. One thing I would have liked to know is how to build my own site. I would like to know how to that so I could design it around my classroom for parents so they can stay informed about what their children are learning in class.I could publish announcements, assignments and general school information. I'm not sure how complicated the process is of designing one but,I think it should be covered. I do wish their were more reference notes available for excel and word documents for people like me who are not computer savvy. So to answer the question "Did I learn?" yes, Mr. Wakeman you have brought me a really long way from where I started. Thank-you for you patience.

WGBH

I visited WGHB on ITunes U and watched two short videos on planets. The first video was title “What is a Planet” this was a three minute explanation about how scientists define a planet. The video was short and to the point. There were great images used to show differences and it did not use complicated terminology or jargon. I enjoyed watching it and will definitely use it in the future to explain the differences in planets and dwarf planets. This video is a great way to take a break from books and drawings and give the students visual demonstrations of the differences.

The second video on ITunes U I viewed was titled “Solar Eclipses” this video explained how a solar eclipse happens and why not everyone on the earth can always see them. A scientist in this video does a demonstration with a softball and the sidewalk so show the basic concept of how an Eclipse happens. The video was very informative without making it complicated. Students could definitely get the idea and concept from the video and I would highly recommend its use in the classroom.

A Night in the Global Village

Heifer International is a nonprofit group focused on raising awareness about underprivileged areas and ending world hunger. One of their learning facilities is located in Perryville, Arkansas at this facility students are able to experience a night in a third world situation. The locations represented are Guatemala, Thailand, Zambia, Generic Urban Slum and a Refugee Camp. Students are only given supplies that a family in this location would typically have on hand. It is up to the students to work as a group and trade and barter for supplies that other groups have access to. The must cook all their meals and clean the dishes, build fires and basic jobs other people living in these conditions would experience everyday. The students placed in the refugee camp are given no supplies and must beg for everything they need and are unable to communicate with their language. Some random students are given more challenging situations like pregnancy, and losing a limb.

This is a great way for students to really learn and understand poverty by living it and feeling what other people feel. However, unlike the people who this is just everyday experience students know they will receive food the following day. First hand experience is a great way to make hunger a real experience. Reading about poverty in a book and experiencing a taste of it is great to make students understand what it means. They come out being more empathetic people and feel a need to help people living in these places.

The Edible Schoolyard

The Edible Schoolyard is a project developed by Alice Waters a local chef in Berkley, California. Chef Waters developed the program to help urban students learn about where their food comes from. It was an idea originally to improve cafeteria lunches for the students and has since snowballed from there. Students have a one acre garden that they plant and weed and fertilize. They not only learn how to grow food but, they also learn teamwork and a since of community.

All academic courses are covered with the time spent working in the garden. And students who may not be the best math or science students but, work well with their hands now have an opportunity to shine. The garden provides students real life uses for the subjects they learn in the classroom and can now see how those skills are useful in the real world.

iTunes University

ITunes is a great educational tool for educators and students. With iPods the classroom can be taken anywhere a bench in a park, in the car, or riding a bus. IPods allow you to be able to listen to lectures and podcast anywhere anytime. ITunes University allows educators to publish their lectures and notes on iTunes and students are able to download them to their iPods and replay their lessons over and over.

Some universities have published all of their lectures and professor notes on iTunes so that students have access to them. Students are also able to download podcast to their iPods. Instructional videos can also be loaded to an iPod. The new 3g iPods are able to access Wi-Fi even if its location is not close.

In closing I think iTunes have great academic potential if educators can look past the entertainment aspect. Almost all electronic devices now have multi-purposes if we can look deeper than entertainment value. Computers were once for business purposes have now exploded with music video and gaming capabilities, yet we push schools into using them for learning and broadening our students’ horizons into the virtual classroom why not do the same with iPods. We as educators have to embrace all the new technologies ideas for our student’s sake.

Ipods for Education

IPods like many other technology advances do have academic advantages. However they of course can also be misused. Students can benefit from using IPods in the classroom. Students are able to keep a calendar and a recorder at the palm of their hand. They are able to down load pod cast and listen to them over and over. However many universities do not allow such electronic devices in their classrooms at all because you can also use the device to cheat on exams and projects.

A study recently conducted at Duke University studied the educational benefits IPods have in the classroom. 1,650 freshman students were given IPods to use in their field of study in and out of the classroom. Many of the students used the IPod calendar feature to help keep up with projects and test. Some other used the IPods as alarm clocks to help them to get to class on time. The rowing team used the IPods to recall their calls to the rowers to help with practices. So with all new technology ideas there are always pros and cons you just have to weight them yourself to see if the benefits out way the risk.